


Fireflies in a Jar

by daehwisvoice



Category: Produce 101 (TV), Wanna One (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, College AU, In A Heartbeat AU, M/M, Soulmate AU, clueless!Daehwi, innocent!Guanlin, just...weird but sweet and cute and...!Woojin, tsundere!Jihoon, whipped!Jinyoung
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-01
Updated: 2017-10-23
Packaged: 2019-01-07 16:35:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,981
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12236637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daehwisvoice/pseuds/daehwisvoice
Summary: "These fireflies are you. You illuminate the dark and frightening world with your little lights. And I would wait forever for summer to come, when I can finally have you in a jar, in my world."





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Please enjoy (:

Jinyoung has been wondering for years how does it feel to be loved. He has always been dreaming of a wonderful and perfect relationship with his soulmate. How they would go on cute and fun dates, watch movies while cuddling at home, and kiss each other good night every day. His heart always leaps whenever he thinks of it; but he would always feel dejected whenever he saw a yellow-colored heart with a pair of big eyes, heart-shaped mouth, and 2 legs, tap dancing on his palms.

 

“You’re still a baby, Jinyoung. You’re not ready for your soulmate yet. If you meet him this near future, he would immediately die from secondhand embarrassment at how you tripped yourself in front of thousands of people at your graduation.” The annoying voice of his heart will always get Jinyoung in a bad mood, more so its jests.

 

Jinyoung had known for years that he isn’t into girls, explaining the use of ‘him’ by his heart. He had a crush on his childhood friend back then when he was 5 - when he still did not know anything about soulmates; but his friend told him that it’s weird. A boy liking another boy is weird. He told his mom about it and his mom just hugged him tight and said “it’s ok, you’re fine” several times until he felt how wet his shirt was, realizing that it was his mom’s tears. While his mom has been showing him a constant support, she almost always says that he cannot go around telling people that he is attracted to boys, simply because it is uncommon. He would ponder about this several times a day, a month, a year, to simply found an answer that it’s okay to be different, to be uncommon, as long as he stays true to himself. But who is he kidding, anxiety and fears kicked in. As the fear of people judging him grows and eats on his heart, he becomes a quiet person. People around him think he is cold-hearted and ignorant, but he is just misunderstood. He is unconfident, he fears people like how he fears his heart stops beating. But in this lonely world, he only has himself and his heart, a part of him which will stay pure, stay true to him no matter what happens. As annoying as it seems to be, it is a part of him that he is proud to have, proud to show to the world.

 

“Shut up, you ugly, now go back to your place before I catch you and confine you in Tan’s cage.” Yes, his pet dog, Tan, would be happy to play with it, but what would Jinyoung be without his heart?

 

Jinyoung decided that yellow will be his most hated color in the world at that moment.

 

\-------

 

He was in his last year of high school when he realized that Bae, his annoying yellow heart, turned bigger with orange color replacing the ugly yellow, appearing with an even bigger mouth. Yeah, Bae Jinyoung deadass named his heart over his surname; he’s just that weird - besides, he found his yellow heart looking similar to a pear he saw in a downtown supermarket, so, yeah. A part of him was glad it turned into hues of orange instead of that boring yellow he has been accustomed to; but a tiny part of his mind cannot lie how worried he was for his future. What if his soulmate won’t like him as much as he do?

 

“Congratulations, Bae Jinyoung, you’re a step closer to kill someone.”

 

The annoying voice of Bae brought him to the reality that yes, he’s a step closer to meet his soulmate as orange means at most a year left before they meet. In his busy life preparing for college, he shouldn’t have the time to think about his soulmate; but he’s not Bae Jinyoung if he didn’t do so. His soulmate and the fact that he won’t be lonely anymore were his main motivations to study, as his intuition told him that they would meet in college.

 

“Shut up or you’re gonna get choked.”

 

\-------

 

Jinyoung aced all of his exams and got accepted into Yonsei, his dream University since he was little. He took Korean Language and Literature as his major, and Philosophy as his minor. Back in his junior high school year, he would never think that college will be this busy. He thought that all of his hard work studying in high school is nothing compared to how people studies here. He remembered going to Yonsei in his last year of high school to find students running around taking their books with them everywhere they go and confining themselves in the reading room for days before exam period started. And that exact scenery will be the one welcoming him to his college life.

 

Jinyoung rents a small room in a goshiwon around Sinchon so he can focus in his studies. The landlady is nice to him, even though her voice is so loud Jinyoung thinks that it’s no use moving to a goshiwon; it will still be noisy anyway. But her son, grumbling as his mom asked him to help Jinyoung put his luggage in his room, is a really nice person. He is handsome and cute at the same time, but Jinyoung saw what-seemed-like a couple ring on his ring finger - if he hadn’t had the ring with him, Jinyoung definitely is sure that he is his soulmate. As noisy as she is, the landlady always makes sure that Jinyoung feels at home, as he has not experienced living so far away from his parents yet before; so maybe, Jinyoung thought, this is fine.

 

“The name is Park Jihoon. Nice to meet you.” The boy says while winking. Okay, Bae Jinyoung needs to calm himself down before he embarrasses himself having his heart leaping out in front of a taken person.

 

“Uhm, hi, I guess? I’m Bae Jinyoung.”

 

Jihoon leaves him after they were done putting all of Jinyoung’s luggages in his room. Jinyoung unpacks all of his belongings and makes himself at home. He brings his favorite pillows, blankets, and family pictures - his most beloved treasures, with him. He sees his mom, dad, sister, and brother smile so brightly at the camera in that picture and suddenly he misses them. It hasn’t even been a day he got separated, but he already misses them so much his heart might burst.

 

Then, Bae suddenly decides to surprise Jinyoung by leaping out, showing itself with different appearance. Now Bae is almost the size of his palm, with cute pink replacing the orange hues. It actively beats in his hold, and a smile suddenly draws itself in its face.

 

“Long time no see, loser, I guess it’s near, huh?”

 

“Yeah, it’s near.” Pink is the epitome of beauty, in Jinyoung’s opinion. The color pink reminds him of home, associated with tender love from his family, as it was his mom’s favorite color. She painted his little sister’s room pink to brighten their house. Jinyoung is really close with his sister, as she would ask him to tutor her and bring her out for ice cream dates. He would forever be grateful for his sister for always reminding him to eat, bringing a glass of water while Jinyoung studied, and talking to him whenever he felt lonely.

 

“Will my soulmate like me back?”

 

He always feels he would really love his soulmate - whoever they are; for themselves, for their own physics and personalities, their hobbies and interests, their emotions, their heart. Never does in his life he imagine not being in love with his soulmate, the one who is destined only for him to love. He wouldn’t hesitate to give his whole heart to them, as he has already been longing for them all of his life.

 

“He won’t if you won’t fix your clumsy ass.”

 

Jinyoung takes note to never ask his heart for advices anymore.

 

“But maybe he would be attracted to your small head and nice body. You just need to fix that creepy smile.”

 

Okay, maybe his heart can be an asshole sometimes, but it always speaks the truth; and this one particular truth makes him feel better.

 

\-------

 

The next day is the first day of school and apparently for Bae Jinyoung, it is his first day to look for his soulmate. He woke up early, took a shower, grabbed a piece of bread and ran outside of his house while nibbling on the said bread. To say that he is in a good mood is an understatement. He is ecstatic and his joy is shown through the little skitters he does while going down the road to his school.

 

As he enters Yonsei’s front gate, snow pours down. It might be the last snow, as it’s already the end of February, so Jinyoung savors his time in its beauty. He closes his eyes, opens his palms and lets the snow grazes his hands softly. When he opens his eyes again, he sees something breathtakingly beautiful. It’s a boy, a bit shorter than him, smiling so big his eyes crinkle into a line. He is wearing a cute sky blue sweater with an oversized coat and soft blue mufflers protecting his ears from the cold-bite of the snow.

 

Jinyoung’s heart beats so fast it leaps out from his chest. And here his heart is, all in its red glory, running circles on his palm and decides to just drag him by his finger towards that boy. Jinyoung, who just realized what is happening, runs towards the opposite direction, dragging Bae with him, and hides behind a big tree. Bae just literally turned red from pink in a day; it will be bad for his heart.

 

Jinyoung is sending a death glare to his own heart and shout-whispering like a crazy person, “What are you doing you shitty little ugly shit and why are you this re...d?” followed by a scream, “OH MY GOD PLEASE DO NOT LET THIS HAPPEN I AM NOT READY YET.” His shout is stopped by a slap to his cheek and Bae sending him the biggest grin ever. “You ready to die now ‘cos I’m throwing you to his direction in 3..2...1” and Jinyoung feels like he is defying the gravity as cold air hits his cheeks strongly and the wind moves past him fast. He tries to stop Bae from dragging him, but he is just a fragile little boy who regrets all of his life choices to never do any sport in his life before. He closes his eyes and uses all of his power to stop Bae.

 

He finally succeeds to halt his movement but when he opens his eyes, his face is just a millimeter away from the boy’s and his hands, gripping Bae real tight, are circling the boy’s hips like he’s hugging him. He sees a pair of beautiful brown eyes, opened so wide Jinyoung swears he can see his full reflection on it. “Um?” Jinyoung swears, he is already so beautiful; but his voice is out of this world. It sounds so soft it makes Jinyoung thinks of marshmallows and cotton candies and those white clouds he always wants to touch. The boy blinks and Jinyoung is finally aware that he practically is hugging and almost kissing a stranger. He releases his unconscious hug from the boy and dashes towards the bushes.

 

He crouches down, holding Bae so tight in his palms, closes his eyes, and inhales so fast he almost chokes. Bae is smiling at Jinyoung’s state of disarray, while beating so fast it might burst into pieces. 

 

“He is so cute, Jinyoung. I know you want him. We want him. Mine.”

 

\-------

 

Daehwi’s first day of school is not bad, it is just really weird. He was walking with Guanlin and his hyung, Woojin, towards the entrance of his new University when he saw a red thing in a shape of a heart with big eyes and two black feet - or hands? He honestly didn’t know; dragging a boy towards his direction. He closed his eyes expecting a huge collision, but after a minute or two, he didn’t feel any pain and when he opened his eyes, he saw someone a millimeter away from his face, closing his eyes while hugging him. “Um?” Daehwi hadn’t had the chance to say anything before the boy practically bolted out towards the bushes. Woojin and Guanlin literally laughed their asses off until they cannot breathe properly. Daehwi lowkey wished for them to choke and die.

 

“What?” His usual sweet voice is now full of bites as he directed it toward those two.

 

“Someone’s whipped.”

 

“Congratulations, Daehwi-ah, you’ll be free from your forever single ass in the near future.” Maybe Daehwi didn’t catch the sentence that well - he’s not that stupid, isn’t he?; but he really didn’t understand a single thing his brother said. “Huh?” He only showed his confusion towards them when suddenly Guanlin, the ever so sweet Guanlin, just found his long-lost bravery and decided to snark at him. “Are you living behind a rock for these past 18 years, because I swear, you’re the most outdated person I’ve ever known. You just found your soulmate, loser.”

 

Daehwi is beyond shocked, “What soulmate?” came from his mouth as he glanced over the direction of the bushes the boy ran to. Woojin stopped Guanlin from snapping at Daehwi as he saw how frustrated Guanlin was. Then, Woojin nodded. “Daehwi must not know anything about soulmate because his heart never showed up to him before.” Never did Guanlin think that it was possible until he heard it himself from Woojin. But who is Guanlin to think that it’s weird, when he himself has a problem with his own heart.

 

“Have you ever seen someone being dragged by a tiny little red creature towards someone else’s before this?” Guanlin asks. His focuses on Daehwi while happily munching on his fries. They are in the cafeteria eating their lunch after Daehwi finished his first lesson of the day. “Nope. Never. Or...I just don’t care, maybe?” Being in a relationship has never been an entertaining thought to Daehwi. He loves his life just as it is; playing with his friends, being attached to his hyungs, and free from all the commitments he hates. “A heart can leap out of someone’s chest when that person thinks about their soulmate.” Woojin begins, as he sits down after taking his order. “It starts with yellow, a phase when you become aware about the presence of a significant other. Then it turns orange, meaning that the time is near, they should be prepared to meet their significant other soon.” At this rate, Daehwi found it ridiculous, how heart can leap out of people’s chests and all that bullshits. “The orange will soon turns pink if they are ready to meet real soon.” Woojin pauses for a while before continuing “And the final stage is red. The heart will turns red once they meet their significant other, their soulmate.”

 

\-------

 

The concept of having a soulmate frightens Daehwi, as he, in his 18 years of his life, never has any desire to be in a relationship before. Sure, that boy from this morning might be attractive, with a small head and nice body, also a pink blush adorning his cheeks; but for God’s sake, Daehwi doesn’t know anything about him. Why is life being so cruel it dictates someone to be with a person they don’t know whether would be compatible. Being in a relationship means you have to dedicate your whole life to your significant other. Being in a relationship means freedom is a luxury.

 

He is happier like this, with all of his family and his group of friends adoring him, doting on him everyday. Being in a relationship will just make his life more complicated and Daehwi is a man of simplicity. He never would want to complicate his own life if he can find a simple way living it.

 

He goes out from his room to find his brother and his boyfriend pinching each other’s ears  on the couch in front of the TV. Their relationship may look violent, but actually, they are so sweet, too sweet for Daehwi’s liking. He remembered being so jealous of Woojin’s boyfriend because Woojin’s attention was divided - it was not exclusively his anymore. But Woojin would not get the predicate of best-brother-ever if he cannot console Daehwi, with promises of more bed-time stories and pillow fights. “Daehwi-ah, hyung misses you!” Jihoon, Woojin’s boyfriend chirps, as he sees Daehwi going out from his room, with his right hand still in Woojin’s left ear while Woojin is kneeling and screaming at him to let him go. “Jihoon hyung!” Daehwi is happy to see him. As violent as he is to Woojin, Jihoon is the sweetest human being in Daehwi’s opinion. He is the only one Daehwi trusts to share his problem to, mostly because Guanlin is just too innocent and Woojin is just plainly dumb. Also, Jihoon would buy him ice cream to console him, make a blanket fort for the three of them to cuddle in, and stroke Daehwi’s hair until he falls asleep.

 

Daehwi joined their shenanigans, cheering Jihoon while he beats his sorry ass of a brother up. To be honest, this is Woojin’s forever favorite moment as even though he is being bullied by both Jihoon and Daehwi, he is so happy with the fact that his most beloved people in the world get along well with each other.

 

Daehwi tells Jihoon what happened this morning with that weird boy and Jihoon cracks up. “Remember our story, Woojinie?” He smacks Woojin’s forehead with his palm but at the same time stares at him so fondly, like Woojin is his whole Universe. “Up until now, I still don’t know what happened to be honest.” They tell Daehwi that their first encounter was unusual, and they don’t really know what happened before.

 

The doorbell suddenly rings. Daehwi’s eyes search for a clock and he sees that it is already 4. He almost forgets that he promised Guanlin to check on his Korean essay. “It must be Guanlin.” Daehwi says as he walks towards the front door. He opens his door to let Guanlin in and they walk towards the living room. But then, strangely, Woojin, Jihoon,  _ and _ Guanlin suddenly start to act weird. Their faces are so pale and their heart burst at the same time, leaping out of their respective chests. Daehwi sees three tiny red creatures run towards each other, fuse into one, and disappear behind the blinding light they exude. Guanlin is the first one to notice, as he looks towards Woojin’s wrist, a small red thing carved onto it. Guanlin looks at his own wrist, and found a little heart tattooed there. Both Woojin and Jihoon, seeing what Guanlin did, copy his action and see their own wrist for themselves to find out the same heart.

 

To say the scene was weird is an understatement. Those three are in a daze, no one dare to break the silence they are in right now. 

 

“Uh, so.. I’m Guanlin?” Guanlin says in his stutter, his eyes finding Jihoon’s. Jihoon, who unconsciously staring at Guanlin, gets startled. He narrows his eyes and glares at Guanlin while his hand searches for Woojin’s. Then, Jihoon stands up, yanking Woojin while he is at it, and drags him to his room. He slams the door hard. 

 

Guanlin, taken aback from Jihoon’s reaction, hides his face in his palms.

 

Seriously, Daehwi doesn’t know what to do. He really wants to console Guanlin but Guanlin is too out of it. He is just there, staring blankly at the floor. “Guanlin.. I think it is better to go to my room? You could.. uh.. sleep?” Daehwi strokes Guanlin’s back and leads him to his room with his hand softly guiding him on Guanlin’s back.

 

Daehwi guides him to his bed, covering himself with blankets, enveloping him in a hug, before telling him to sleep. “Do you want me to leave or..?” He drags his sentence, and Guanlin just nods. “Thank you, Daehwi-ah. I owe you one.”

 

Daehwi knows, and out he goes.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally updated this fic!  
> I'm so sorry I haven't been able to update it faster cos life happened. :(  
> But here it is, enjoy!!!!

Daehwi knocks on Woojin’s door and gets in when Woojin lets him. Jihoon is still crying, he is latching onto Woojin’s back and doesn’t want to let go. Woojin is making faces to Daehwi to mock Jihoon but honestly, Daehwi doesn’t even know what to say or do. “I knew it, Woojin-ah.. I knew it would be like this” Woojin rolls his eyes. Jihoon has been saying that phrase for ten times, Woojin swears he doesn’t count.

 

“Can you guys fill me in? What happened actually?”

 

“It was our first meeting.” Jihoon continues to cry while Woojin pats him on the back.

 

\-------

 

Woojin had been living only with his little brother, Daehwi, for as long as he can remember. Their father passed away when they were still toddlers, thus all of the financial responsibilities went to their mom. Their mom worked so hard so both of them can go to school and got the education they needed. He still remembers how his mom cried so much telling him that she is not enough for both of them in his last year of junior high. Daehwi was in his 8th grade that year. Woojin cried along with her when she told him she decided to move overseas. He remembered hearing USA as her destination and how she told them to move with her. Woojin didn’t want to move, neither did Daehwi. He was too attached to leave all of these behind, his small but comfortable house, his friendly neighbours, his friends, and his soulmate. Yes, he hasn’t even met his significant other yet, but he knew, he just knew that they must be here, waiting for him to find them.

 

He promised his mom he would take really good care of both himself and Daehwi and he won’t disappoint her. His mom reluctantly agreed with a promise of Woojin immediately calling her if there are incidents. Woojin’s and Daehwi’s bond as brothers was so strong, for they have been depending on each other for so long. Woojin is forever grateful for Daehwi, as he is much more mature than his age. People who barely know him would think of Daehwi as a spoiled brat, but that is not true at all. Daehwi was the one who constantly remind them to live frugally. They could cut so much living cost just because Daehwi always cooks for them. He would wake up at dawn to prepare their breakfast and made dinner even after all his classes and extracurricular activities. Daehwi is also observant. He would just sit on Woojin’s bed all night doing nothing when Woojin was having a bad day, then he would go out to buy a pint of ice cream for them to eat together. These littlest things are the one that keep Woojin being himself.

 

Woojin wanted to say that his life is already complete, but he cannot lie to himself that he need his soulmate. He cannot wait to see his heart turning red every time he thought about it. And red it turned when Woojin started his second year of high school.

 

He remembers that day like the back of his hand. How he met Jihoon and directly fell in love with him. He was copying his friend’s Physics homework at that time when his homeroom teacher came to the class and introduced a transfer student. 

 

“Hi guys, I’m Park Jihoon. I just transferred from Masan. I hope we can all be friends! Nice to meet you guys!” 

 

Ok, Woojin didn’t expect the boy to be so pretty, so dazzlingly beautiful his heart leaped out from his chest. He whooped so hard at that feeling, face as red as tomatoes when his classmates turned their head to his direction. Woojin hid his face in his hands, but at the same time peeking at Jihoon. He got startled when he saw a little red creature dancing on Jihoon’s palm while Jihoon looking back at him smiling shyly. At that time he just knew that Jihoon is his soulmate, but why was their encounter different from others? He had seen some people’s encounters, their hearts fused into one, and a little red heart carved to their wrists. But why was theirs only filled with little red hearts dancing on their palms?

 

Even though it was a weird encounter, needless to say, they both directly fell in love with each other and hit it off. Their days were filled with banters, annoying each others, and angry pecks as they playfully hit each other. It might not be the sweetest relationship out there but these are them, these small things were what made them comfortable with each other, what made them true to each other, what made them  _ them _ . It might be a rough journey knowing each other’s personalities and characteristics, but these were what made their relationship’s foundation so strong.

 

\-------

 

Daehwi empathizes with them as he sees with his own eyes how attached those two are to each other. Sure, they had their fair share of fighting, but never did Daehwi see their arguments lasted for more than a few hours.

 

“But Jihoon hyung, can you please give Guanlin a chance?”

 

Jihoon, nibbling on Woojin’s sweater, looks at Daehwi like he had grown another head. “Um, how about...no?” Daehwi had never known about the concept of soulmate until today, but even he is annoyed with Jihoon’s answer. The three of them are soulmate and breaking a soulmate bond is practically impossible, yet here Jihoon is, rejecting the idea of Guanlin being their soulmate.

 

“Park Jihoon, for the love of God, I love you so fucking much, ok?. Ok, that might sound creepy being out from my mouth, but you already know that, right?” The teary-eyed Jihoon looks at Woojin with fear drawn in his face. Woojin never expressed his feelings sternly like this. He either would whisper it shyly in Jihoon’s ears or say it loudly while they make out. 

 

“Guanlin is our soulmate. You cannot just straightly reject him in front of his face without even giving him a chance, giving us a chance to work together, it would break him! You know how soulmates’ hearts are connected to each other? I thought you out of all people will understand.” Woojin continues. Daehwi swears, even though Woojin says it in that scolding manner, he still can see love radiating from his eyes. Park Woojin is the epitome of whipped.

 

“But.. he would ruin us, Jin! I.. I feel it, I also feel the hurt he was experiencing, b-but.. I’m just scared, okay? You know my fear in the beginning of our relationship? How I felt that we won’t work because we’re just so different? You know.. that anxiety kicks in”

 

Woojin envelops his boyfriend in a hug, he wraps him with blankets and sits him on his lap. “I know.. I know, Ji.. I know your biggest fear about our relationship. I know how insecure you are to commitments but let’s stop hurting ourselves ok?” Woojin pecks Jihoon’s nose and Jihoon smiles a little at that gesture. His Woojin just knows him too well.

 

“Well, I have a confession. I met Guanlin before I met you and he was still 13 when I’m 14 at that time. He is my mom’s friend’s son. His father got a job in Korea and that’s why he moved.”

 

Woojin pauses for a while before continuing, “He was a timid kid, he feared everything, but mostly people. He was so quiet I thought he cannot speak.”

 

Daehwi remembers how genuinely afraid Guanlin is when his mom introduced him to both Woojin and Daehwi. The poor boy doesn’t understand any Korean at all and he just squirmed whenever Woojin or Daehwi called his name. Fortunately, Daehwi really loved English, so when Daehwi tried to speak English with him, Guanlin slowly opened up. However, Daehwi was curious as to why Guanlin cannot open himself up towards his brother. Sure, Woojin might not speak English as fluently as him - hell, Guanlin could barely understand him introducing himself; but it was weird how Guanlin would hid himself behind Daehwi whenever Woojin appeared and blushed like mad when Woojin called his name.

 

“I felt it with him too. But we were just too young, we don’t know anything about soulmate at all at that time. It was when mom’s still here. I did not know the concept of soulmates until my mom told me how lucky my soulmate would be for finding me while nagging me to always make my soulmate happy.”

 

“But mom never told me that?” Woojin smiles and replies, “That’s because she knew you were not interested.”

 

Jihoon stares at Woojin, his eyes, which previously was casted down, sparkles with curiosity. His eyes are honestly Woojin’s favorite. Those eyes are so deep, radiating warmth and sweetness - honey dripping from them. God, he’s just so beautiful, Woojin thinks as he stares deep into those marbles. “It was like a small tug at my heart. It’s almost unnoticed, but indeed was there.”

 

Woojin remembers how he would stare at Guanlin unconsciously, until he realized his own act and looked somewhere else except to the cute boy conversing with his little brother with his cute broken Korean, gummy smiles adorning his face. It’s funny how he always considered this as a puppy crush, a phase that would end once he meets his  _ actual  _ soulmate.

 

Jihoon, a little bit jealous, tightens his hug on Woojin’s neck. However, Woojin sees Jihoon softens at how he described Guanlin. Maybe it’s the fact that Guanlin cannot cope with life here before, maybe it’s soulmate instinct kicking; Woojin doesn’t really know, but he’s glad anyway.

 

“Let’s… talk?” Jihoon finally sighs and climbs down from Woojin’s lap.

 

\-------

 

Guanlin wakes up from a soft pat from Woojin. His Woojin hyung, someone he adores and looks up to so much. He looks so soft, with little smile in his face. But that smile is suddenly replaced by a frown as he sees Guanlin’s state of mess. Guanlin remembers crying until he fell asleep, his eyes must be swollen from all those crying. He hates himself for being weak, for letting his insecurities kicked in his system once again, for making his hyung worried.

 

“Guanlin-ah, Jihoon and I want to talk. Can we… talk?”

 

“H-hyung… Where is Daehwi?” Guanlin stutters.

 

“He’s outside with Jihoon.” At the mention of Jihoon’s name, Guanlin’s face falls.

 

Well, he is not ready. He doesn’t want to break down in front of his soulmates and make a fool out of himself, he really doesn’t want to talk. He just want to go home and trap himself in his dark room, crying alone at his fate, at how he was unwanted, how no one wants him, how... 

 

“Guanlin?” His train of thoughts is cut from Woojin’s soft voice. His hyung is worried, okay now he makes his hyung worried out of nothing.

 

Guanlin gets up, his long legs wobbling because he lost so much strength. Seeing Guanlin trembles, Woojin grabs his hand and strokes his thumb on Guanlin’s hand to soothe him. The hold is warm, Guanlin thinks as he casts his eyes down to the ground. 

 

“You okay there, Guanlin-ah? Do you need..” 

 

“I’m ok, hyung. Let’s just go out and finish this already.” Guanlin says with a strained voice.

 

He just want to get this over with and goes home to drown himself in sadness. Here he is, feeling like going back to his own shell after successfully going out from it; the fruit of so many years building his self-esteem from Woojin’s and Daehwi’s accompaniments.

 

Woojin feels how frightened Guanlin is. It’s like having their efforts wasted just from a sentence, but Woojin, without any hesitation, would go along the process hundreds, no, thousands times more just to make Guanlin opens up to them - to  _ him _ once more. He softly pulls his hand, guiding him to the living room. Guanlin sits on the sofa hugging his knees and looking like a lost puppy with swollen eyes and a frown.

 

Daehwi really wants to disappear. He just doesn’t know how he get caught up in this mess. But one look from his hyung, Daehwi sits himself back down beside Jihoon. He knows that Woojin needs him. Woojin needs him to be his anchor, to make him stay sane after all these mess. But mostly, Woojin needs him to soothe Jihoon. Emotional Jihoon has always been a problem for him, and Woojin knows. He knows how Daehwi is Jihoon’s soft spot. He would never raise his voice in front of Daehwi in fear of Daehwi feeling uncomfortable around him.

 

When Jihoon looks at him straight in his eyes, Guanlin averts his gaze and tightens his hug on his knees. The hard demeanour in his face softens, Jihoon’s heart breaks at the knowledge that he had ruined someone, more so someone so pure and innocent like this overgrown puppy in front of him, and even more,  _ his _ soulmate. Daehwi rubs his back, trying to calm him down and not letting him drown in his emotions.

 

“I’m sorry, Guanlin-ah.” Soft baritone voice suddenly fills the quiet room. Daehwi is trying his best to smile encouragingly to Guanlin, nodding to let Guanlin know that it is okay to talk, it is okay to let them know how hurt he was, it is okay to be here, to be  _ theirs _ . Guanlin is overwhelmed by feelings, most of them are feelings he have never experienced before. Of course he is still upset, the damage is done anyway, but he is also a little bit happy because Jihoon shows that  _ at least  _ he cares,  _ at least  _ he understands Guanlin’s feeling. He is still being cautious, though. Well anyway, it has always been hard for him to express himself, more so after all these discomforts he was in.

 

Guanlin can only nod and silence encompasses the room once more.

 

“Do you think we can work? I-I mean… if you don’t want to… I… am okay, I guess?” A little tremble is heard from his voice. Well, Guanlin gathers all of his courage to say just that one sentence. And lies. He won’t be fine, but he can try.

 

“I honestly don’t know… I don’t really like the idea of having two soulmates. You know, I don’t share.”  Woojin is openly glaring at him. 

 

“But... we can try?” Jihoon might seem to have the resolve to try this weird relationship, but Guanlin is still not sure. He might be fine now, but what if he fell out of love with Guanlin once he knows him more? Guanlin is not sure he would be able to open his heart anymore. Well, love is a very complex feeling. He won’t be able to say that he already loves Jihoon from this encounter, but, he fears being rejected and left alone more.

 

And bless Park Woojin, that sweet guy just decides to stroke Guanlin’s head and smile so brightly Guanlin thinks he’s all the stars combined. “We’ll try Guanlin-ah, and by trying, I mean I won’t ever let you go. You’re a part of us and no one can say otherwise.” For now, Guanlin feels safe. Well, he always feels safe whenever Woojin is around, tho. But now, he knows why.

 

“Thank you,…. hyung” There might be no smile but Woojin knows, from the sparks of his eyes, that Guanlin feels a little bit relieved. Woojin would never want Guanlin to feel lonely since he knows how the ghosts in Guanlin’s head are active when Guanlin is alone. He would feel inferior, thinking what he had done for others are not enough. But actually, it is enough. Guanlin’s smile is enough, it is so beautiful it could cure cancer, it is so beautiful it brings happiness to people seeing it.

 

Guanlin is not aware that he has been holding hands with Woojin the whole time they talk. When he tries to loosen his grip, Woojin holds it tighter, he brings Guanlin’s hand to his lips, and traces it slowly with his lips, leaving little kisses at his fingers. Oh, how shocked Guanlin is. This little gesture from Woojin makes his heart pound so hard. Then, he looks at Jihoon, who is sitting there quietly, face void of all emotions. Guanlin feels intimidated. He really wants to pull his hand free but Woojin continues kissing his hand while looking at Jihoon. 

 

It might be seconds before Jihoon bursts.

 

Shocked is an understatement for Guanlin when Jihoon launched himself towards both of them, tackling him and Woojin to the ground, and start cuddling with them. “We’re gonna make this work. I promise.” Jihoon nods resolvely at Woojin, his hands looking for Guanlin’s and Woojin’s to hold.

 

Maybe today is not that bad, maybe Guanlin is blessed. He has two amazing soulmates who are within his arms’ range. Affections and feelings can be developed along the way, but being physically close is a blessing. He really hopes this relationship will work.

 

\-------

 

Daehwi is sitting in front of Woojin, Jihoon, and Guanlin in the cafeteria silently cursing them at being so gross with each other. They have been going strong for two weeks now, with whipped Woojin being his tsundere self to Jihoon but being the sweetest candy cane for Guanlin; and puppy Guanlin attaching himself to Jihoon everywhere he goes while being so pliant towards Woojin. But Jihoon holds the trophy of being whipped. The moment he accepts Guanlin in his life, he is like an entirely different person. The always sassy Jihoon is now capable of being soft, even softer than he ever treats Daehwi.

 

When it was Woojin’s role to remind Jihoon of everything before, now, Jihoon is the one who nags Guanlin everyday. Jihoon’s mom even packs extra lunch for Guanlin now because one time, Jihoon caught Guanlin only buying kimbap for lunch and immediately going back to his classroom. Guanlin is a smart boy, the smartest in his batch, and he is crazily diligent. He would only spend half an hour each break to eat, then goes back to his class to review the materials or do his assignments. But now, Jihoon is making it his life mission to make Guanlin sits with them in the cafeteria every lunch.

 

Guanlin now regrets all of his life choices at how he was intimidated by this ball of fluff and sunshine. Sure he is still exploring to which extend he could talk to Jihoon, but by now, he knows it really well. Jihoon accepts him wholly already. He understands Jihoon’s way of thinking because maybe he’s the same as him. He doesn’t give a single fuck for people irrelevant to him, but he will be a clingy mess to those who he loves so much.

Jihoon’s head is on Woojin’s shoulder and his hands are busy feeding Guanlin who is reading the material for today’s test. In between Woojin’s sighs and Daehwi’s whining, Jihoon takes the handouts away from Guanlin’s hands, “Pay attention to us, Guanlin-ah! You had enough time to study already I know you will ace this test!” Usually, Woojin would scold Jihoon for intruding Guanlin’s precious study time but today, he stays silent. He also hope that Guanlin would pay more attention to them because he also misses him so much and he knows that Guanlin had poured all of his energy to study for this test already, thus he knows that Guanlin will do well. Guanlin rolls his eyes and tries to take his handouts back, when Woojin takes it from Jihoon’s hand. And when Guanlin leans in to take it back from Woojin’s hand, Woojin pecks his lips.

 

Jihoon who was sandwiched between them blushes like mad, but nothing could ever beat how red Guanlin is. “W-Woojin hyung, that’s a dick move!” Guanlin feels cheated. How could he go back to studying when Woojin literally just did that? His heart beats so fast he cannot function normally anymore. As Guanlin is still in his trance, Jihoon takes this opportunity and circles his hands on Guanlin’s neck, pulls him closer, and pecks his nose. 

 

“J-Jihoon hyung!!!!!”

 

\-------

 

Daehwi is in a bad mood. Woojin, Jihoon, and Guanlin really had the audacity to do that in front of him. As much as he is happy for their growing relationship, he feels lonely. Sure, they included him in conversations and such, but he just cannot help feeling the loneliness.

 

He is walking to his classroom when a little red creature with two big eyes and little feet hopps its way to him. “BAE!” Someone shouts from across the room and Daehwi sees that guy again. That boy with beautiful eyes who hugged him and almost kissed him on his first day of school is now running towards him, hands outstretched for that little red creature. He bows down and says sorry to Daehwi before pulling his heart from Daehwi’s hand. But that stubborn little creature clings to Daehwi with all of its strength.

 

Then the heart starts to be torn from the force. Daehwi freezes when the boy battles with himself whether to collect Bae again but tearing it into two, or letting it clings to Daehwi. Jinyoung feels bad letting Bae clings to Daehwi, thus he decides to pull him, and Bae was torn into two. Daehwi catches that red creature in his hand and he sees that its eyes, mouth, and legs are gone, replaced by a lifeless half piece of it. When he looks up front again, that boy is already gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for those expecting Jinhwi here :(  
> I think I got carried away writing panwinkcham here.  
> I just love them too much :(
> 
> Anyway, next chapter will be Jinhwi's!  
> If you have any inputs or comments, please don't hesitate to comment here or hit me up on twitter @daehwisvoice!
> 
> Thank you very much and I love you guys!

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, guys, it's the first day of October and it's raining so hard here. I hope you are well, wherever you are. As autumn has come, please always keep yourself warm!
> 
> I decided to write another story, and now it's gonna be chaptered. This work is dedicated to Jinhwi's relationship, which is getting better and better each day, I hope they get married already. I hope you will enjoy this piece! Honestly, I still don't have a direction as to where this fic will end, so if you guys have any comment and idea, please hit me up in twitter @daehwisvoice! I would be really glad to make new friends and talk all day about Jinhwi and how real their relationship is.
> 
> Thank you!


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